Rumble in the Jungle, the music project for under-fives devised by Paul Rissmann, the animateur for the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, has been hailed as a breakthrough in music education in Scotland. Now, after its successful inauguration in East Renfrewshire last year, it has been taken up in Clackmannanshire.

The project is aimed at helping pre-five classes to make their own music based on the poems and illustrations in the book of the same name, written by Giles Andreae and illustrated by David Wojtowycx (Orchard Books, 1996).

Musicians from the RSNO worked originally with children in several East Renfrewshire nurseries, culminating in a performance of the music they had created.

Mr Rissmann acknowledges that he was on a steep learning curve in the development of the project. He had never worked with such young children before, but the basic principles he devised proved effective and he has compiled a resource pack for schools.

The many lessons learned are being put to use in Clackmannanshire, where 14 nursery classes and two family centres are currently creating their own Rumble in the Jungle.

Prior to starting the project, the children were taken to hear the orchestra in rehearsal, and Mr Rissmann and the participating musicians hosted an in-service training day for 84 nursery teachers at the RSNO’s Glasgow headquarters, the Henry Wood Hall.

“Some people are terrified of music,” Mr Rissmann says,“but I think the methods we are passing on genuinely require no specialist music knowledge at all. The only way the project can work, though, is for the teachers to do it themselves. Our job is to give them the confidence and the methods.”

In a session, each group creates its own distinctive piece of music based around one of the poems from the book, complete with lyrics and accompanying physical actions. Mr Rissmann emphasises the importance of these actions in grabbing and holding the children’s attention.

The programme involves moving in basic steps through simple pulse, rhythm and melody exercises, all of which are within the grasp of a four-year old (or a diffident teacher). Little is needed in the way of special equipment beyond some basic school percussion instruments, including a metallophone or xylophone. Part of the project involves the children in making some of their own.

Mr Rissmann emphasises that the point is not to create technically expert music but to work with the children in a creative way. In the process, they will learn about the importance of regular pulse in music and about rhythm, delivered through clapping and percussion instruments.

They can create their own melodies using a simple but ingenious method which involves taking a metallophone or xylophone, throwing five contiguous bars from the instrument on to the floor and having the children choose four of them. The bars, placed in the chosen order on the stand, will always form a serviceable melody with no difficult intervals. The children can sing the song they have written in the process of composing a simple melody.

The building blocks of pulse, rhythm and melody are then complemented by what Mr Rissmann calls “special sounds”, which can be used as background textures in the music and as signals for the children to stop and start their singing and dancing. Instruments such as wind chimes which make a sustained sound are good for this and are effective in attracting the attention of four-year-olds.

In Alloa, one of the seven RSNO musicians involved in the project, oboe player Clare Cushing, was making her second of seven visits to the children at St John’s Nursery and Claremont Nursery, who had been working on their songs. The children had already made some instruments (shakers) and classroom decorations and as the project nears its finale the teachers will be involved in creating costumes representing the particular animal which their class has chosen to depict. In late March, all the various groups will come together to perform their pieces.

It is never too early to acquaint children with music: their capacity to pick up on ideas is apparent in the nursery sessions. While the musicians play an important role in the project, part of the object of the exercise is to make them redundant, Mr Rissmann says.

“The skills we are passing on are all things the teachers can do themselves in class. One of the gratifying things about the East Renfrewshire project is that after it was over, they came back and said ‘We are going to do another one next year, but we won’t need you, thanks’, which is fantastic.”

For more on the RSNO’s education projects, contact Ewan Small, head of education, tel 0141 225 3578